Hillary's NPR Interview on Gay Marriage Was Misreported

My opinion: Hillary Clinton's responses to Terry Gross in her NPR interview on the issue of gay marriage were not the subjective terms used by reporters — such as "testy," "contentious," and "annoyed" — but, rather the equally subjective "firm" and "polite." (Another opinion, having listened to the interview several times: Had it been a man, the words "testy" and "annoyed" would not have been used.)

While subjective impressions can reasonably differ, the facts and words in the interview speak for themselves.

Here are the relevant excerpts — I have highlighted key words in the Q's and A's. The entire transcript on the gay marriage issue can be found here.

Q1. GROSS: What's it like when you're in office and you have to do all these political calculations to not be able to support something like gay marriage that you actually believe in . . . correct me if I'm reading it wrong.

A1. CLINTON: Well, I think you're reading it very wrong. I think that, as I said, just as the president has said, you know, just because you're a politician, doesn't mean you're not a thinking human being . . . you're constantly re-evaluating where you stand. That was true for me.

Q2. GROSS: So just to clarify — just one more question on this — would you say your view evolved since the '90s or that the American public evolved allowing you to state your real view?

A2. CLINTON: I think I'm an American. (Laughing) And I think we have all evolved and it's been one of the fastest, most sweeping transformations.

Q3. GROSS: I'm pretty sure you didn't answer my question about whether you evolved or it was the American public that changed (Laughing).

A3. CLINTON: I said I'm an American, so of course we all evolved. And I think that that's a fair, you know, that's a fair conclusion.

Q4. GROSS: So you're saying your opinion on gay marriage changed as opposed to you — you just felt it was comfortable . . .

[Isn't this a repeat? She just said "we have all involved . . ."]

A4. CLINTON: You know, somebody is always first, Terry . . . You could not be having the sweep of marriage equality across our country if nobody changed their mind. And thank goodness so many of us have.

A5. CLINTON: You know, I really — I have to say, I think you are very persistent, but you are playing with my words and playing with what is such an important issue.

GROSS: I am just trying to clarify so I can understand.

CLINTON: No, I don't think you are trying to clarify. I think you're trying to say that, you know, I used to be opposed and now I'm in favor and I did it for political reasons. And that's just flat wrong. So let me just state what I feel like you are implying and repudiate it. I have a strong record. I have a great commitment to this issue and I am proud of what I've done and the progress we're making.

Q6. GROSS: You know, I'm just saying — I'm sorry — I just want to clarify what I was saying — no, I was saying that you maybe really believed this all along, but — you know, believed in gay marriage all along, but felt for political reasons America wasn't ready yet and you couldn't say it. That's what I was thinking.

CLINTON: I did not grow up even imagining gay marriage and I don't think you probably did either. This was an incredibly new and important idea that people on the front lines of the gay rights movement began to talk about and slowly but surely convinced others of the rightness of that position. And when I was ready to say what I said, I said it.

GROSS: OK, thank you for clarifying that.

You decide whether Mrs. Clinton was asked and answered the same question many times.

This column appears first and weekly in The Hill and the Hill.com.

Lanny Davis is the principal in the Washington, D.C., law firm of Lanny J. Davis & Associates, which specializes in strategic crisis management. He served as President Clinton’s Special Counsel in 1996-98. Read more reports from Lanny Davis — Click Here Now.

My opinion: Hillary Clinton's responses to Terry Gross in her NPR interview on the issue of gay marriage were not the subjective terms used by reporters — such as "testy," "contentious," and "annoyed" — but, rather the equally subjective "firm" and "polite."